Friday, February 14, 2014

Bookkeeping the retired guys, 2014 edition

In keeping with what is becoming an annual tradition, there follows a very, very lengthy look at all the retired players this site has, for whatever reason, kept tabs on before. (Some of them are a bit niche. But when you're in, you're in for life.) This list is mostly of recent NBA players and an update of the 2013 edition of the same list. The cut-offs are somewhat arbitrary, but they have to be somewhere.

Most sites, when they charge themselves with the task of writing a "where are they now?" post about someone, don't actually fulfill that mandate. Instead, they talk about "where have they been?" and give career retrospectives hitherto. And they'll do so one person at a time. That is not the intent of this post. The intent of this post is, what do these people do with their lives now, and/or what is the last piece of news we have on them. It's better this way.

Connor Atchley - The former Texas big man and Kings signee is now a market analyst at Stream Realty Partners.

Chucky Atkins - Last year, Atkins began coaching at his alma mater, Evans High School in Orlando. In June of last year, it was reported that he would leave Evans to join his other alma mater, USF, in a student manager role working for Stan Heath while he worked to complete the undergraduate degree that would allow to him take a full time NCAA assistant coach's role. However, Atkins ultimately turned down the offer to stay at Evans, where he remains.

Maceo Baston - Runs a cupcake store in Detroit. And if you don't believe me, here it is from the horse's mouth.

I enjoy the bit where he compares the level of fame of the NBA to the level of fame of cupcake shop ownership. I want to see that. I also enjoy the generosity he bestows to the interviewee. The lesson, as always - take a camera into the street, film people's chests, then sit back and reap the rewards.

Raja Bell - His ugly and unsuccessful Jazz stint having finally come to an end, Bell gave it once last chance with the Knicks in the summer, but his body had nothing left to give, and he has now retired to spend time with his family.

Mark Blount - Hitherto untraceable in every other attempted update on him thus far, Blount has finally surfaced in the following press release.

Lancaster, Pa. (September 27, 2013) – Auntie Anne’s, the world’s largest hand-rolled soft pretzel franchise, recently announced retired NBA star Mark Blount as its newest franchise partner. Blount will team up with Auntie Anne’s to introduce its famous soft pretzels at both CityPlace and the Palm Beach Outlets, two premier shopping destinations in West Palm Beach, Florida. The locations are expected to open in November 2013 and February 2014, respectively.

Blount was first introduced to the Auntie Anne’s team at a Professional Basketball Alumni Association (PBAA) event. After months of back-and-forth communication, he determined that partnering with the brand made sense as his next business move.

“I was actively looking to break into the franchise industry, but I wanted to find a company that was a good fit for me,” said Blount. “I really felt that the Auntie Anne’s brand provided what I was looking for. After getting to know Mr. Dunn and the Executive Team intimately over the past few months, I am excited to officially join the company as a franchise partner.”

Dejan Bodiroga - At last update, Bodiroga was the president of the Serbian Basketball Federation and rumoured to be in contention to take over as president of FIBA. This has not happened - instead, in December, it was reported that Bodiroga will take over next season as the president of Partizan Belgrade.

Damone Brown - Brown pleaded guilty in a plea deal to his money laundering charges and avoided jail time. He briefly resumed a basketball career, playing in the ABA, PBL, Mexican and Venezuelan leagues, and now coaches. Very well, too, by the sounds of it:

Worth every minute and every penny. I taught my son all I could and was looking for a personal coach. I then found Damone through CoachUp and I am glad I did. After only a few sessions with Damone my son's game has seen significant improvements.

Jeremy (CoachUp confirmed client)

In additional to private clients and his AAU work, Brown also coaches at a high school, and has long since run Get Fresh Productions, a company that produces an annual fashion show.

Zarko Cabarkapa - Cabarkapa's comeback attempt started and ended five years ago, and he had not been heard from since. However, he recently reappeared at a Spartak St. Petersburg game, working as what Google Translate describes as a "delegate."

Elden Campbell - Campbell, who retired nine years ago, has made no news since that time.

Jason Capel - Still the head coach at Appalachian State, but is only 7-16 on the season.

Michael Curry - After many years as Doug Collins's right hand man, Curry interviewed for the head coaching job upon his departure, but lost out and was let go by the incoming Brett Brown. He has been quiet ever since.

Brian Cusworth - After a lengthy European career, Cusworth took a shot at the NBA with the Celtics, but had not recovered sufficiently from his serious injury. He went to the D-League, still hadn't recovered, went to Germany with ratiopharm Ulm, still hadn't recovered, and decided to retire. He is now back at Harvard medical school.

A professional athlete should be structured as a corporation. Most professional athletes make more money than the average small business. PPH maximizes a pro player’s earning potential by setting up a corporate structure and it is within this corporate structure that the client will make most of his expenditures where they will be tax deductible.

Justin Davis - Program manager at the Kapor Center for Social Impact in Oakland.

Kyle Davis - Auburn's shot blocking specialist's career ended a few years ago after multiple knee surgeries and meniscus tears. Now lives in Birmingham, Alabama.

Tyrone Ellis - At the time of the last update, Ellis was an assistant coach for the Tulsa 66ers. He is now an assistant at the Reno Bighorns instead, whilst also running a company called Court Vision Consulting, and the Chief Communications Officer at Pride Performance, a strength and conditioning company.

Andrei Fetisov - Recently elected to the executive committee of the Russian Basketball Federation.

Kimani Ffriend - In November 2012, Ffriend agreed to leave his Serbian team Metalac to sign a deal in Spain. But late on the 2nd November, before leaving, Ffriend, allegedly drunk, knocked down and killed a pedestrian, Nevena Dragutinović. He spent 10 months in custody in Serbia awaiting trial, only recently released with an electronic bracelet. Ffriend's trial has been postponed on multiple occasions, and was most recently due to start on January 21st, but was once again postponed when a new witness came forward. Ffriend pleads not guilty.

Michael Finley - President and CEO of Follow Through Productions, a film production company. Also a special assistant to Mark Cuban, and runs a foundation.

Richie Frahm - Here's a long article about Frahm that talks about his transitional period after retirement, his struggles with coaching and running camps, before finding something to immerse himself in: cycling.

Dan Gadzuric - Listed here due to claims he retired, despite contradictory evidence. After being waived out of camp this year by the Lakers, Gadzuric retired, save for keeping open the possibility of playing in Puerto Rico one day. He then changed his mind and is about to sign with Iranian team, Petrochimi.

Reece Gaines - At last update, Gaines was an assistant coach at Division 2 Bellarmine, but only in a volunteering role. He is now in the role full time.

Mike Gansey - Director of Development League Operations with the Cavaliers.

Jorge Garbajosa - Works for the Spanish Basketball Federation, and is currently touring Spain with "Road Show 14" in which he teaches a basketball clinic. Here's a clip from it.

Spanish architecture is just better.

Pat Garrity - At last update, Garrity was an associate client advisor at Bridgewaters Associates, dealing with hedge funds. You can now drop the word "associate" from that, as it seems Pat got a promotion.

Devean George - Now working in property development in Minneapolis, working currently on a 45-unit affordable housing project that he says will be fly.

Kendall Gill - A long time analyst for CSN Chicago, Gill was let go at the end of last season after punching a colleague. He said he was to be starting a new show alongside Stephen Bardo, although it is not clear if this has started yet.

Gordan Giricek - Attending a music academy to further his guitar playing hobby. Also attending dance school. This isn't a joke update, by the way. None of them are. He really is.

Kyle Goldcamp - D-League veteran and one time Cavaliers big man Goldcamp retired this summer, despite a career best campaign last year, and is now the youth minister at St Bede Catholic Church in Pittsburgh.

Anthony Goldwire - At the last update, Anthony Goldwire was an assistant coach for the Bucks, but did not have his contract renewed in the summer. He is seemingly involved in youth tryouts, in some capacity, although it's not clear how. He also played again in a rec league last spring, aged 42.

Jurica Golemac - His long European career coming to an end this summer, Golemac is now an assistant coach with Cibona Zagreb.

Brian Grant - Runs the Brian Grant Foundation that vows to aid the suffering of Parkinson's syndrome, rather than find a cause. Here's a video on how he is doing. And yes, he's shaking noticeably - don't watch it if you don't want to see that.

Troy Hudson - Seems to have returned to music, doing so with a Christian message as a part of the collective "Sswag [sic] Movement." (The "Sswag" stands for "Stop Satan's work against God.") Here is some of it.

Federico Kammerichs - Former Blazers draft pick Kammerichs retired this past summer. He somewhat retracted this last month when he committed to playing at the local level, but that qualifies as a retirement by my arbitrary metrics, and thus he is included here.

Kerry Kittles - At last update, Kittles was on Wall Street, working for Ledgemont Capital Group LLC. However, Ledgemont went into liquidation last year, so Kittles set up IQ Sports Solutions, an analytics company.

Going through and creating this list, and seeing names such as Macijauskas, Kutluay and others (even those such as Antoine Rigaudeau), evoke memories of the European flood that came into the game ten years ago, and some of the eggs it through up. In the last ten years, both NBA scouting and the mutual appreciation between the European and NBA games has improved greatly. There are never really painfully forced marriages like the one between Macijauskas and New Orleans any more. And that's refreshing.

Mark Madsen - In May, Madsen left his assistant coaching gig at Stanford to become the head coach at the L.A. D-Fenders. However, after two months and zero games, Madsen returned to the parent club and became an assistant coach for the Lakers after vacanies opened up.

Corey Maggette - Retired after training camp and hasn't had time to be heard from again, it appears.

Jamaal Magloire - Player development coach and community ambassador for the Raptors.

Aaron McKie - Lost his job as an assistant with the 76ers when Brett Brown took over. Took an analyst job with Comcast Sportsnet instead. On the plus side, got the following compliment from Allen Iverson:

"I talk about the mistakes that I made in my career. I made a million of them, but if it weren’t for Aaron McKie I would have made two million of them."

In lieu of news, then, here's some clips from The Perfect Score, the 2004 film in which Miles starred alongside Scarlett Johansson. Darius can be seen in this clip in a quiet, understated role, letting you know he's there without the need to draw attention to it while simultaneously commanding the respect of the room.

And in this scene, where he shares screen time with Scarlett, Miles contributes a key plot point to a group scene, and even has lines and everything.

After spending more than 14 years in the NBA, Brad Miller is excited to be focusing all his time and energy on the next chapter in life his passion for hunting lifestyle as a good ol' country boy. He's worked hard for his toys, and now he's ready to play!

Even after the glitz and glam of being an NBA superstar, Brad has stayed true to his roots as a small town Indiana country boy. Now with 900 acres of his own farmland, Brad has the resources to live out his dream of hunting, fishing, and enjoying the great outdoors.

Now in entering his fourth season as the host of Country Boy Outdoors, Brad is well adjusted to the pressure of getting the kill. After a successful three seasons with Jon Brunson, Brad is ready to branch out on his own to take his all-star friends and hometown buddies on the adventure of a lifetime.

Tune in to the Sportsman Channel to join Brad as he travels the world doing what he loves: Whackin' and Stackin' baby!

Mobley has in the last year made rumblings about a comeback at age 38, and worked out for some teams in the offseason. Coincident with, but certainly not coincidental to this, Mobley's other documented ventures on here have seemingly been closed down for now, or at least lowered in profile. Mobley, it should be remembered, was investing in medicinal marijuana clinics.

Ira Newble - At last update, Newble was an assistant coach for the Austin Toros. He now is not, and other Ira Newble news is not so good. His foundation is listed as "dissolved," and, though it cannot be said for certain, this and this might be the same Ira R. Newble II. According to this, Newble is now back in Detroit rehabbing and coaching, although it does not say in what capacity this coaching comes.

There's a song called Ira Newble. I quite like it.

Drew Nicholas - Now a studio analyst for Total College Sports and ESPN3.

Moochie Norris - The website for moochienorrisbasketballacademy.com no longer works, but the Houston based company is still in business.

Zack Novak - Novak played one professional season and averages 17.8 points per game for Dutch side Zwolle. Then, this. He now works at a consulting firm.

Shaquille O'Neal - Part owner of the Kings. Analyst for TNT. Doesn't seem to come in non-drowsy form.

Fabricio Oberto - At last update, Oberto, who initially retired in 2010 due to a heart condition, had actually unretired to play in his native Argentina with Atenas. He averaged 9.2 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 13 games for them, re-retired, and now is a TV presenter interviewing basketball and music stars. He also owns a winery.

Lukasz Obrzut - Can't be sure, but his Twitter suggests he is back at Kentucky doing a PhD.

Marijonas Petravicius - Petarivicius's career ended in the summer of 2012 due to lung disease. He promptly earned a MSc in European Basketball Coaching Science from the University of Worcester (don't ask how such a basketball-weak nation as mine has produced such a valued resource as this because I don't know), and is looking for coaching opportunities.

Kevin Pittsnogle - Has left behind his education career and is now a sales representative for a car dealership in Martinsburg, West Virginia.

Scot Pollard - Continues to star in B movies, the latest of which is under the eyecatching title, "Destination Planet Negro." How does it shape up? Well, here's a blurb.....

In 1939, leaders of the Black community in America come up with a secret solution to the problems of racism and discrimination -- leave the planet! They launch a rocketship with three astronauts -- the intrepid Professor Avery; his beautiful and intelligent daughter Beneatha; and crack test pilot "Race"Johnson -- to claim the planet Mars. Will these brave explorers make it to "Planet Negro"? What lies on the other side of the wormhole they fall into on the way? Find out, in this new black (and Black!) comedy from Kevin Willmott (CSA: The Confederate States of America, The Only Good Indian).

......and here's a video.

Scot Pollard doesn't appear in that trailer, it seems, but IMDB says he plays a character called "The Coyote." Sounds PRESTIGIOUS.

The director of Destination Planet Negro, Kevin Willmott, is also soon to release a film about Kansas basketball called Jaywalkers.

Willmott's KU basketball film, Jayhawkers, is set for Spring 2014. Through the eyes of Wilt Chamberlain and Forrest 'Phog' Allen, Jayhawkers takes a unique look at racism,college sports and the changing tide of opportunities throughout the Midwest in 1950s America.

Pollard is credited with both a screen credit and an associate producer's spot on Jaywalkers.

Olden Polynice - Claims to have a few things going on - "Ambassador at Large Haiti, Radio Host, Coach and DJ", per his Twitter. Like Pollard, he too will soon appear in a film, hosts a radio show called The O Zone, really wanted a job with the Clippers, owns a coaching service called Next Star Basketball, works as an ambassador for the National Basketball Retired Players Association and an ambassador at large for Haiti (others with the same title include Sean Penn and Petra Nemcova), and used to be a colour commentator for the now-defunct Sacramento Monarchs of the WNBA. Can't seem to find a clip of him as a DJ, though.

Don Reid, former Detroit Pistons power forward, spends much of his time working with mentally disabled adults as a job coach and gym teacher at the Troy Center for Transition.

[...] After retiring, Reid spent time managing custom car shops in Florida and Michigan, and then began volunteering at the Royal Oak Boys and Girls Club. It was his time there that led to his position at the Troy Center for Transition.

Reid created the “Odd Ball Olympics” while in Royal Oak. The events included pole balancing, Eskimo kick and ping-pong tap, which allowed kids with less athletic ability to feel more confident stepping out of their comfort zone.

Jared Reiner - Also works in sales for Stryker Instruments, who clearly have a good Iowa connection somewhere.

Nate Reinking - As was somewhat predictable, Reinking is now an assistant coach for the GB national team.

Eddie Robinson - Robinson actually made a comeback recently - after four and a half seasons out of the game, Robinson returned to play for the Halifax Rainmen in the NBL Canada, averaging 9.7 points and 2.1 steals per game before being released. He has not played again and is assumed to have returned to Houston, where he has a family.

Glenn Robinson - Glenn Robinson news is hard to come by, due in no small part to the emergence of his sons, Glenn Robinson III (a legitimate draft candidate out of Michigan) and Gelen (who just committed to playing football at Purdue).

Joey Rodriguez - VCU guard Rodriguez was named as an assistant video co-ordinator at UCF in September 2012, yet this was not the end of his professional career. He returned for one final season in Puerto Rico, his third with Atleticos San German, and averaged career highs of 7.9 points and 3.3 assists per game. However, he was dismissed from the team for a tirade in practice, was subsequently traded to Humacao, played only spot minutes in 12 games, then was released in May. That was the true end of his professional career (at least for now), and Rodriguez has since been named as an assistant at Benedictine College Prep.

Rodney Rogers - Rogers and his wife run his foundation, and also a transport company, Jazzie's Trucking LLC.

Jalen Rose - Works for ABC and ESPN as an analysis, does a weekly podcast called the Rose Report, has written a book due out soon, and has founded a high school, the Jalen Rose Leadership Academy in Detroit.

Kareem Rush - Rush tried to make a comeback this season with the L.A. D-Fenders, and averaged 9.8 points in 12 games, but re-retired from the D--League last month due to injury. He remains with the D-Fenders for now in a loose, unofficial coaching-style role, although there remains hope for one last comeback as a player.

Bryon Russell - Looking for coaching opportunities, but seems not to have yet found one.

Mladen Sekularac - After four years of being unable to trace Mladen Sekularac, he's been found. He qualified last year as an accredited coach from the Russian College of Sports and Health. There we go.

Jabari Smith - Made a comeback in 2012/13 with the Cincinnati Slam of the UBA, averaging 17.7 points and 7.7 rebounds in 9 games, shooting 43% from three. It was his first action since 2010. Managed the impressive feat of scoring between 15 and 19 in every game, which is quite the consistency level. Has since disappeared again and cannot be traced.

Joe Smith - Pursuing his music career under the name Joe Beast. Here's some of his songs in partnership with an artist called Kyss Major - as a duo, they are known as "Sexy The Beast." Googling "sexythebeast" also reveals adult chat websites.

Eric Snow - Sources differ on whether Snow is the director of player development at Southern Methodist University, or an assistant coach. Maybe he's both and the former is just a rewording of the latter. Either way, he is still there, working under Larry Brown, who is the head coach. Rumours that he would leave to join the NBA this past summer did not come to pass.

Awvee Storey - Player Personnel Manager for the Washington Mystics of the WNBA.

Damon Stoudamire - Left his gig as an assistant at the University of Memphis to take the same position at Arizona.

Brad Stricker - Business development manager and regional sales manager at Nuverra Enviromental Solutions in Texas.

Erick Strickland - Has taken up coaching as an assistant at New Mexico Highlands University (division 2), working for a few months prior to this as a high school assistant with Bellevue West High. Worked for the 18 months prior to that as a salesman at an Acura dealership, and trained as a minister. There appears to be no surviving evidence of his one time business idea, Luxury Boys Toys, an online sales portal for very expensive stuff.

Rod Strickland - Special assistant to John Calipari at Kentucky. Nearly left there last spring to go to DePaul, yet it did not happen. Also helps fellow Kentucky assistant Orlando Antigua coach the Dominican Republic national team.

Trent Strickland - Strickland joined the NBL Canada to start the 2012/13 season, but tore his knee and retired from the game. He subsequently went back to school and got a job at Enterprise.

Curtis Sumpter - Sumpter retired in 2012 and returned to Villanova as a director of student-athlete development, then left this autumn to join the Philadelphia 76ers as a video co-ordinator and player development coach.

Maurice Taylor - According to LinkedIn, a partner in a firm called Luxury Asset Lending.

Billy Thomas - Head coach at Barstow School in Kansas City, Missouri. Recently returned to Kansas to graduate in African American Studies.

Etan Thomas - An author and a speaker, about fatherhood, mentoring, politics, and the like.

Kenny Thomas - Runs golf tournaments and sells "super oxygenated" bottled water. If you're wondering how he can do both, go to his website. And if you're wondering what Kenny Thomas looks like with a bottle of super oxygenated water, here's a picture.

Bonzi Wells - The only Bonzi Wells news of late was his summer time participation in the NBA Legends tour of Asia, and this lawsuit.

David Wesley - Coached for a bit, then moved into broadcasting, and is now the colour commentator for the Pelicans.

Robert Whaley - Untraceable since his release from prison, which is better than at least one alternative update.

Jahidi White - In 2007, White set up a music production company, Cuzzo NoiZ. It is unclear what has become of it.

Chris Whitney - Still the director of player development with the Bobcats.

Mike Wilks - At the last update, Mike Wilks had just been hired as a scout by the Thunder, and remains there today. Wilks also serves as a board member and development consultant for the To God Be The Glory Sports youth development program.

Aaron Williams - Williams cannot be traced since a very brief assistant coaching stint at Xavier.

Ajani Williams - Williams's long tenure as the president of the Jamaican Basketball Association ended at the end of last month.

Alvin Williams - Williams was working as a scout for the Raptors at the last update, but was fired as a part of Tim Leiweke's clearout. He subsequently was an assistant coach for the Celtics in summer league and later helped out with the Canadian national team, and now is the director of an academy, the Academy of Hoops.

Donell Williams - In the last update, it was reported that Williams was working as a personal trainer. However, it has proven impossible to verify if this is still the case.

Jason Williams - Still plays in exhibitions, and can still handle and pass like crazy, as evidenced by this gem on the summertime NBA Legends tour of Asia:

Jay Williams - Still an NCAA analyst. He is also a managing partner in a marketing firm, Leverage Agency, and recently did a segment with Bryant Gumble where he talks about quite how damaged his knee was, is, and will always be.

His comeback only got him to a D-League standard, a sub-par D-League standard at that, but that in itself seems pretty phenomenal considering what he says here.

Jerome Williams - At powerhouse high school Findlay Prep, a place where many future NBA players pass through, Williams started out as director of operations, then became assistant coach, and then this summer became the head coach.

Scott Williams - Last time we checked, Williams was an assistant coach with the Idaho Stampede, but this summer he moved to take up the same role with the Milwaukee Bucks.

Shammond Williams - Last time we checked, Williams was an assistant coach at Furman, but this summer he moved to take up the same role at Tulane.

Tre'Von Willis - Willis never played professionally after leaving UNLV due to knee troubles. It is not clear what he now does.

Ryan Wittman - At the last update, Wittman had recently left basketball to work in the financial services sector with Morgan Stanley. He has since changed his mind again and returned to basketball as a graduate assistant with Boston College.

Jitim Young - Northwestern alum Young has a lot going on, much of it involving alma maters. Rather than copy it all across, find it all here.

Ray Young - Former UCLA guard Young works for former team mate Matt Barnes's company, Matt Barnes Enterprises, in what he describes as a Strategic Branding Development. He is also launching a fashion line.

Brian Zoubek - At the last update, Zoubek had just closed his pastry shop to take up real estate. Specifically, he now works as a broker for Cushman & Wakefield. He is also studying for a masters in real estate at New York University.

Eurelijus Zukauskas - Owns a construction company. Still plays amateur ball and has done some camps.

About The Author

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